Sunday’s Red Sox starter Hunter Dobbins told reporters that he would never put on the Yankee pinstripes.
Growing up a Boston fan, Dobbins made it clear that, if the Yankees were the only team to offer him a contract, he would simply retire.
Aaron Judge caught wind of those comments just before Sunday’s series finale, and the first pitch he saw from Dobbins, he clobbered into the right field bleachers for a majestic two-run missile to the opposite field to give the Yanks an early lead.
Asked about Dobbins’ comments after the game, Judge admitted that the 25-year-old’s remarks crossed his mind as he stepped in to face him in the bottom of the first.
“Once somebody tells you, yeah,” Judge said with a laugh when asked if Dobbins’ anti-Yankee comments were in his head during that brief and impressive first at-bat.
Judge heard about the rookie’s comments shortly before the game courtesy of a member of the ESPN broadcast, and he wasted no time offering his response in the form of a thunderous home run, his first of two in the game.
“I really didn't hear about it until Eduardo Pérez told me before the game,” Judge said. “I've only heard Ken Griffey say that, so I was a little surprised.”
Dobbins and the Red Sox got the last laugh with an 11-7 win to take the series, but Judge went deep in the ninth for the 43rd multi-homer game of his career, tying Lou Gehrig for the third-most multi-homer games as a Yankee. He now trails Mickey Mantle by three for second place, with Babe Ruth leading the way with 68.